Toddler Friendly Layout

[Anonymous]

Please Help!!!!!!!!!!!!!

I'm wanting to start a new N-Guage layout for myself and my kids. The problem is that one of my kids is only 3 and I feel he is too young to appreciate how fragile some of the components can be. Any tips on storage and accessability so that we can all enjoy it?

[?][?][?]

[railman]

For a toddler, I think the bigger the better. N Scale is small enough to choke on. There are lots of "G" Scale-sized toy trains that can be fun for a few years until everyone is a bit older and knows that an n-scale SD40-2 is not a synonym for popsicle!

Just my two cents.

[bikerraypa]

QUOTE: Originally posted by railman

...until everyone is a bit older and knows that an n-scale SD40-2 is not a synonym for popsicle!

It isn't???? [:(]

Ray (age 31)

[Anonymous]

I agree. For someone that young I think at least O scale would be a better choice. You might be able to get away with HO if you watch him closely

[selector]

Do you ask about the layout, the engines and rolling stock, or the whole shebang?

For the whole shebang, locked room. For the layout itself, if it isn't portable, locked room. For the trains, locked cabinet or chest.

[Big_Boy_4005]

If you must do N scale, do it for yourself and the older kids. At 3 years, with those trains, it needs to be a spectator sport only.

I'm afraid that "toddler friendly N scale" is an oxymoron.

[lupo]

when I restarted in the hobby ( HO ) I made a `DEAL` with my son also 3 at that time,
I had some locomotives on display, I gave him a piece of track on a board and his
own engine and cars I let him pick up at a swap meet from the cheapo pile, and we agreed that he would not fumble [:o)] with my trains as I would not fumble [:o)] with his trains.
I also gave him some sectional track to work with.
he has his own lay-out now and asks once in a while if my engines want to visit his engines to "socialize".
I made the outer ellipse on his layout a permanent flex track loop, and added some switches to allow him to fill in the inside of the layout with his sectional track. any configuration he comes up with.[:D]
At least the outer loop always allows him ( and me ) to run trains

[Fergmiester]

At three he should have the joy of playing with their toys. touching, smashing, tossing and ramming is what they get the most enjoyment from. Therefore I would recommend Brio or Thomas the Tank Engine. If they can't touch, they will get frustrated, angered and eventually walk away from it all.

They need to play on their terms.

Fergie

[simon1966]

My 2 are now 7 and 5. When I started back in this hobby they were 3 and 1. First of all, I did not start construction of the layout room until a couple of years ago, so the initial exposure to "Daddy's trains" was a very controlled loop of track on the kitchen table. I am in HO and my oldest soon learned that he had to be careful. I taught him how to put the freight cars on the track with a re-railing ramp. We also played simple freight forwarding games. I would run a short train round the track with hoppers filled with M&M's. He had to take delivery of different colors. Then we would reverse the game and he would run the controller and deliver M and M's to me. Now the layout is in full swing. I built the bench work low. I am happy to let either, or both the boys play in the train room on their own. I run Digitrax DCC with sound and because they have grown up with the trains they have learned to run the system un-supervised. Having said all that. When they are in the 2-3 age group. I actually think they have more fun pushing trains around on the wooden track. My 2 still do this, building complex setups. There is a company in St. Louis www.woodentrain.com that makes a great line of more realistic rolling stock, which get played with in preference to the Thomas stuff.

[MisterBeasley]

Patience, Grasshopper. In a few more years you'll be asking your little one to install DCC decoders for you, because their eyes are better, their fingers are smaller and more dextrous, and they know everything about computers. But in return they'll ask you for the car keys, and you won't see them all day.

Whatever you do, make sure you can do it together. The Wonder Years don't last long, when you're looking back at them. Brio, then Thomas, and most kids will learn to respect the fragility of the trains. Accept that some things will get broken, because they inevitably will. It's a small price to pay for the time you'll spend with the kids.

[RoyalOaker]

QUOTE: Originally posted by Fergmiester

Therefore I would recommend Brio or Thomas the Tank Engine. If they can't touch, they will get frustrated, angered and eventually walk away from it all.

They need to play on their terms.

Fergie

This is good advice, My son (3) has his share of wooden tracks and trains for the rough play and train crashes and other impossible train scenarios. I have an HO scale set in the basement and have a few freight cars and a couple of Dummy engines that I will allow him to push on the outside track, He also has one old AHM engine with power that I will let him run at top speed. But he understands that the downstairs set requires special care and supervision. I have put down a few rubber mats that I found at Sam's club so that when he drops something it doesn't get destroyed. These help when I drop something also[:I]

[Anonymous]

I have a three year old also. He has tons of the wooden trains and track, but he still wants to "help" with my work in progress (layout's in the garage). I got him a Bachmann Thomas set, some extra track and some used freight cars off Ebay. The Bachmann track is great because the molded roadbed makes it really hard to tear up and it will run on the floor or table top easily. Also, there is no wiring - a plug from transformer to a terminal section is it. FYI this is HO scale.

[jrbernier]

I think 'Toddler' is too small as others have posted. My son got 'involved' when he was about 4 years old. I gave him a plastic engine shell(painting mistake) amd he shoved it around the floor, quite happy. When he was 7, he got his own HO freight car(a 40' gon) that he called his 'dirt car' and was allowed to move it back and forth on a yard track. By the time he was 12, he could run trains with the best of the adults, and knew how to operate the cab blocks! At 14, he attended the NMRA convention in Madison and became a DCC 'wizard'. Now, at 21 he has just graduated, started work, and his hobby is 'girls'(figures). Like most of us, he will fall in love, then look for a 'hobby' to take his mind off of his problems.....

Jim Bernier

[conford]

Brio is for Toddlers. We have a whole box of Brios. They get used almost every day. We have two layouts set up in the basement. One is the "up layout", out of reach, used under supervision. It's DCC, point to point. The kid layout is about 6 feet long and has some track and equipment for hands on play.

Don't let them wreck your N scale stuff. It's too small for them and you need your sanity.

Aren't kids fun?!?

Peter
conford

[countershot]

I would not do N scale for toddlers HO maby O would be you best bet.

[Jetrock]

Indeed--maybe the best way to go would be to have the N scale layout up high where the older kids can play with it, with a Thomas or Brio play set underneath for the 3 year old!

[nickinwestwales]

Dont know if you can get this stuff where you are,but Hornby Thomas kit is built on the old std. Tri-Ang chassis and is pretty bomb-proof . The U.K. tension lock couplers can stand a greater degree of abuse than the real thing and the 3-axle chassis with the floating centre axle is rock-solid on the roughest track you can imagine-also the basic Hornby starter sets quite often used to come with a battery box power supply which might be a better bet for a young child................just a thought,regards,nick

[mcouvillion]

Brio for little ones, inexpensive trains as they get older and can prove to you that they know how to handle the trains, then their own rolling stock and motive power so they develop a sense of pride of ownership (and loss if "their" stuff is damaged and won't run any longer).

Mark C.

[yellowducky]

I think supervison is the key. And if the child knows the meaning of the word NO.
Also, no 2 children are alike. The real question is: Can you two play together nicely? I'm not trying to be funny or anything. One just needs to get down on the child's level if you want to play with him or her.

The trains need to be kid-friendly if you want them to survive. I do hands-on trains for kids. When I first started taking trains "out", I took my 3x5ft. N gauge layout. I don't think it's been out of the house for over 15 years.

For kids, I'm realy sold on using Thomas and friends plastic stuff made by Tomy. Thomas and Friends wooden by Learning Curve is great too. I have lots of both. The ease of putting Tomy or Learning Curve trains on their tracks, along with how easy the track goes together, has got to be the big plus that make these popular with children.

I think any train for a toddler should be able to free-wheel when shut off.
Those that run on metal track don't.

[randybc2003]

I got'a say: Door, fence, and lock and key. Small cars & engines too big a temptation for little tykes. I think the G/O, Thomas, Brio is probably the route for little ones.
Check the Mag' Indexes, I recall an article in MRC a numberof years back about a layout a fellow built with his kidk, with an eye to the survival of the layout for little kids. It was a success - HO.
Give the little rascles something to be fascinated by and have fun with!!!
RBC

[Bikerdad]

Lego is the way to go. It allows them to build anything they want, cra***hings so they go "boom" without actually being damaged, reconfigure the layout on a whim, etc. If you want to raise engineers, architects, builders, etc, get Legos early, and get Legos often.

The only downside is that the Lego rail system takes up a fair bit more space, but hey, anytime you can combine pirates, ninjas, explorers, astronauts, and trains, you've got a winner.

and no, I don't own Lego stock.

[rtraincollector]

personaly I would like a few others say start with O or G and I would put my thoughts on back burnner for a couple of years a few idea both in O and G is thomas the tank set also another idea is I have seen G and O by new bright inexpensive and you can go either battery (3 year old ) or electric .

[Anonymous]

My brother is five and a good model railroader. He has an HO model railroad of his own. He has learned to respect the models, because I make him work for his money. He knows how hard it is to make $20.

He also runs my layout sometimes, running the S-2s. He acts very good. I don't think its because I yell at him, I don't very often, I think he acts good around the layout because he is educated.

[TheJoat]

I had a similar problem, but it was HO. My daughter was 5 and thought she could handle the delicate items. Well, she couldn't, and I understood that she really wouldn't be able to until much older. So, I sold my HO and bought G. We had a lot more fun together.

You have to decide if this is really just for you, or for you and them. It's a huge difference.

[Anonymous]

QUOTE: The problem is that one of my kids is only 3 and I feel he is too young to appreciate how fragile some of the components can be.

You may have answered your own question, only you can judge what the best is. My experience is when my daughter was 3 and a half, she really got into trains and that brought me back to the hobby. I still had enough N scale track to make a 2x3 layout she could use. Believe it or not I left it out all day for five month's on end, she could use it anytime she wanted (she used it everyday), and she never broke anything (not even the delicate handrails) although one wheel set did drop off. Would I have done anything different? No, but I realize that anything can happen and I would chock it up to acceptable loss. By the way she is getting my old HO stuff now even the fragile well detailed pieces, and on the way a new bay window caboose that I will have many hours invested in it. Take all of the advice in and decide what is best for you and your kid's enjoyment. Remember that you don't need the frustrations of broken items and they don't want to be frustrated by not being able to touch, find the compromise. Good luck and happy MR'ing.

Chris

[Big_Boy_4005]

QUOTE: Originally posted by Bikerdad

Lego is the way to go. It allows them to build anything they want, cra***hings so they go "boom" without actually being damaged, reconfigure the layout on a whim, etc. If you want to raise engineers, architects, builders, etc, get Legos early, and get Legos often.

The only downside is that the Lego rail system takes up a fair bit more space, but hey, anytime you can combine pirates, ninjas, explorers, astronauts, and trains, you've got a winner.

and no, I don't own Lego stock.

Regular Legos are not recommended for children that young. Lego has a special line called Duplo with larger, easier to handle, child safe pieces. The Duplo line also has a train set available.

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